Fireplace



June 24, 1930; E. RICHARDSON FIREPLACE Filed May 8, 1926 3 Sheets-Sheet l V gwmwlto'z E5 4 24 @AM W June 24, 1930. E. H. RICHARDSON FIREPLACE 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 8, 1926 June 24, 1930. E. H. RICHARDSON FIREPLACE Filed May 1926 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 gwuwntoc Patented June 24, 1930 UEQTETED s'r rr.

, ERI H. RICHARDSON, or San MATEO, cAL IFoRNIA FIREPLACE Application filed May 8,

The present invention relates to fireplaces for rooms, apartments and the like, and a primary object of the invention is to provide a fireplace designed to furnish the maximum amount of heat with the expenditure of the least amount of fuel, and which will certainly carry off the products of combustion under normal conditions without leakage into the room or apartment.

I have discovered that this object can be attained by observing certain relations and following certain rules in the arrangement and proportioning of the hood and throat parts of the fireplace, the design of the smoke chamber, the width of the hood and soflit and the extent to which the firebaclr should be carried abovethe sofiit to provide a hood. These matters are equally as important as the provision of a chimney flue of correct size. Yet, so far as I am aware, little attention has been paid in fireplaces constructed before -my invention-to any of the features that I have found to be of primary importance to the production of an efficient fireplace, both from the stand point of'economy in fuel and satisfactory operation and results. It is another object of the invention to provide a novelmethod of constructing fireplaces'in which a damper supporting structure is utilized which is so designed that it may be used as a templet or uide b ersons not versed in the essentials g y P of a correctly functioning fireplace, to produce a construction that meets the requirements of an efficient fireplace.

.This invention I believe to be.- entirely novel in producing a construction in which certain of the essential fireplace and throat parts are proportioned to the height of the fireplace opening.

I have found as the result of extensive experience, both in designing and building fireplaces and in repairing many hundreds of faulty fireplaces that in order to give the greatest practical protection against smoking or back puffing and at the same time project into the room the greatest amount of heat, that it is necessary to observe a relation or proportion between the height of the fire place opening and the 1926. Serial No. 107, 68.

width of throat aperture; height of fireback, height of front plate or hood anddepth of fireplace on the level of the top of opening or sofiit.

It has been common practice heretofore to furnish fireplaces or parts or dampers of various constructions to meet given lengths (or widths) of fireplace openings, the parts being elongated or enlarged or made heavier to met the requirements of length. Under the existing practice no attentionhas been paid to an increased or diminished height of fireplace opening, the parts of the hood, throat or damper being fixed without regard or consideration for the varying heights.

Such hood, throat, or damper would be furnished with the same relation of parts regardless of whether the fireplace opening were 2 or 4 or of any other height. This common construction I claim to be not only wasteful of heat but often improperly constructed to give satisfactory results. I have determined it to be a fact that often the fireplace which smokes the least is so openly constructed in the throat'parts as to be most. wasteful of heat anda producer of draughts which are at'times more objectionable than lack of heat.

Further objects will appear as the description proceeds with references to the accompanying drawings in which,

constructed according to my invention.

Figure 2 is a central vertical section on the plane, indicated by the 1ine'AA of Figure 1. I l

F igure. 3 is a detail showing the damper blade in front elevation.

Figure 4: is a top viewof the blade.

Figure 5 isa vertical sectional view on an enlarged scale, through the damper assembly, showing the left end plate.

1 Figure 6 is a section on. the line BB of Figure 5.. I p

Figure 7 is a detail View showing the dam+ perblade in end elevation on'an enlarged scale, a portion of said blade being broken away to show the connection'of the-damper handle. L I 1 Figure l is a front elevation of a fireplace A opening though tical construction.

Figures 8 and 9 are vertical and horizontal sections of a modification.

The same reference numerals indicate like parts in the several figures.

1 is the hearth of the fireplace in the wall of the room that has an opening bounded by hearth 1, side walls 2 and. 3, and sofiit 4. As shown on Figures 1 and2 of the drawings side walls 2 and 3 are straight. If desired the fireplace may be constructed as shown in Figures 8 and9 in whiclr the side walls 2 and 3 are straight only for a portion of the depth, and inclined for the remainder of the depth of the fireplace. The widthof the back in a fireplacehaving inclined sides is, preferably, one-half the width of the this may be varied 15% either way Without interfering with the satisfactory operation of such a fireplace. .lngeneral the depth ofthefireplace in both forms of'my invention should be made,at least, one-thirdof the width of the opening and preferably is made one half the width of the opening for the safest and most prac A depth of less than 18inches is not likely to be sufficient except for small grate fires, and a depth of more than 30 inchesis .likely tobe wasteful of heat. Fireback 5 is preferablycurved forwardly toward the opening as, shown in Figures 2, 8 and 9 and extends upwardly to a point 6, .a .distance vertically above the sofiit, preferably equal to 25 percent of the height ofthe fire place opening,though satisfactory operation may be obtainedif this distance is 15 to 30' percent of the height of the opening. Preferably the depth-of the fireplace is measured about 8inches above the hearth level, "but may be determined at said level.

The modified form of my invention includ ing the'inclined .sides 2 and 3 are preferable from the architectural standpoint, giving the fireplace the appearance of stability and functioning to. reflect more of the heat from the sides into the room.

Curved fireback 5 is made slightly concave to form an arch providing a construction .thatis capable of resisting the expan- 'sion and contractionof, the fireback without causing disintegration of the material of whichsaid back isconstructed. Preferably, the curve of said back is determined by a radius equal .to twice .the opening height, though I do not wish to be limited to such specific curvature since variations thereof will obtain all of the advantages of my improved curved fireback.

The soffit a'shoul'd benarrow, preferably about one and one-half inches in width, and inner wall 7 of the "fireplace above thesoffit extends upwardly and inwardly pre'ferably though not necessarily at an' angle of about and .isso formedas-to provide with the upper edge 6 of the fireback a throat '8.

space products natural 9 be of the full width-of the fireplace openas shown on the drawings, giving ample for the collection of gases which are -from tooready escape by narrow retarded throat8.

This full width of the hood 9 is maintained to a height above the soffit equal to, at least,

.20 percent and not more than 40 percent of-the height of the fireplace opening. The

of combustion are collected by the hood 9 and pass through the throat8 into a smoke chamber 10 that is of the full width .of the opening to a point or level 11, where the inward taper toward a flue 12-.of the chimney begins. By maintaining the length of throat and hood equal to the full width of the opening and continuing such undiminished width into the smoke chamber, aspacious chamber is provided reducing thereby the likelihood of pulling or down draughts. The throat 8 leading into the smoke chamber 10 ispreferably of a width equal to 10 percent of the height of the opening of the'fireplace, though a width between 8 percentand 15 percent of said height will operate satisfactorily. The fiue 12 leading .to the'chimney has preferably, a cross sectional area that is about 10 percent of the area ofthe chimney opening. 'A cylindrical flue may be used, permitting a whirling motion of the smoke and gases. 'By the arrangement of a spacious smoke chamber between fiue and throat, smoke will be hampered from entering the room when a gust of wind coming down the chimney opposes the ready egress of said smoke, since in this event the force of the current of. air tending to force the smoke dissipated in the smoke chamber.

I have found that by proportioning the throat and 'fiue as above described with relation to the fireplace opening, a. construction is provided in which the outlet from the fireplace is ample to take care of the products of combustion without being too large and causing a waste of fuel. 'And when an outlet so proportioned is combined withfireback of proper depth and eurve, a hood, collecting said products, 'thathas itsouter edge spaced from the plane of theadjacent outer surfaceof the wall bya narrow sofiit of a width of about one and one-half inches, a

. construction is'provided that I have found-to into the room will be somewhat or entirely In order that a fireplace having the above characteristics may be built by persons that are not versed in the essential elements of a correctly functioning fireplace, I provide a damper supporting construction that is adaptable to fire places having openings of varying heights and Widths and that is so constructed that a correctly designed fireplace is produced when the fireplaceis constructed around my improved damper supporting construction. That is, the width and length of throatS, the height and depth of hood 9, the height of fire-back 5, the width of solfit 4 and the inclination of-inner wall 7 are all determined from my improved damper supporting construction. In addition the pivotal point of the damper is located by said construction. As the damper supporting construction is designed with regard to the height of the fireplace opening, all of the elements above specified will be determined in terms of said fireplace opening height. My improved damper supporting construction will serve as a templet for a properly desi ned fireplace and also serve as a support or a damper, when one is used.

My damper construction and templet comprises two end plates 13 and 1 that are duplicates, except that one is'the reverse of the other. Each plate has a flange 15 and a reversely bent portion 16 forming a channel to receive the'edge of a top plate 17 (Figure 6). Flange 15 and channel 16 are imbedded in the side walls of the fireplace. The front plate 17 forming a part of hood 9 is inserted endwise into channels 16' and is secured to the end plates 'by bolts 18. Plate 17 has a horizontally extending flange 19 that is of a length equal to the Width of the soflit in a correctly proportioned fire p ace.

In order to permit lateral or horizontal expansion of the top plate 17 the openings 17 that receive the bolts are enlarged and plate 17 terminates short of the bottom of channel 16 as shown at 17 This construction permits the movement ofthe plate 17 due to changes in its temperature without causing cracks or fissures in the adjacent masonry. Vertical expansion and contrac= tion of the top or front plate may be taken care of, if essential, by constructing the same in sections attached together by fasteners of any kind that pass through overlying elon ated holes formed in lapping portions 0 said sections, or by providing clearance between the ends of the front plate and the'end plates or walls of the fireplace, or in any other'suitable manner. In this way cracking of the fireplace above the opening will be avoided.

Arranged ineach of the end plates 13 and 14: are two series of spaced perforations 20 and 21, in any corresponding ones of which integral pintles 22 of a damper blade 23 may be arranged. Damper blade 28 is preferably provided with a laterally extending flange 24 that has perforations '25 to receive the eye 26 of a damper operating lever 27 (Figures 2 and 7) which passes through a guiding and supporting clip 28 and has an ornamental handle 29 at its end.

.Stop projections 29 may be formed on the end plates 13 (Figure 5) against which the damper blade 23 is adapted to rest in open position. It will be noted that this handle does not project through the wall surrounding the opening of the fireplace. The handle is held in adjusted position by the engagement of one of the teeth 30 I with guiding clip 28 or by any other means.

The series of pintle receiving openingsor bearings 20 and 21 are so located in the end plates 13 and 14 that properly aligned pairs of supporting openings for the ends of the damper pintle 22 are provided which also mark the top edge of the fireback 5 for correctly proportioned fireplaces of various heights of openings. The opening height corresponding to each hole is preferably stamped in inches on the plates 13 andl l and indicated by the numerals '24:", 26", 28", etc. below the respective openings. Said holes indicate the point to which the fireback is properly carried for the various heights of fireplace openings without regard to whether a damper is used.

It will be obvious that any suitable means other than holes may be used to serve as a substitute arrangement for saidholes. For example,,a series of projecting bearings of any type may be substituted, my invention being in no way limited to the use of series of holes as a means to serve as a guiding point in the construction of a properly designed fireplace or as a pivotal means for the damper pintles. I y

Rib 24: is reduced in width at 32. It is the purpose of this rib to conserve the heat at the points farthest removed from the greatest volume of smoke. Front plates 17 and damper blades 23 may be furnished in various lengths corresponding to the desired lengths of the fireplace openings and the damper blades are of supplied widths that will be suflicient 'to bridge the space between the selected pintle support and the opposite surface of the throat 8.

When constructing a fireplace in accordance with my improved method, the damper assembly adapted for the particular size of fireplace desired is preferably used as a templet to secure the proper fireplace pro portions. I The top plate forms a proper hood and a narrow sofiit of correct width. The fireplace side wallsare built to give the desired Width of opening, and the damper side plates with the damper pintles in the holes corresponding to the chosen height,

are embedded in the side walls with their lower edges spaced from the hearth of the fireplace a distance above the opening to complete -an ample hood and give correct heightv of fireback. The fireback is then brought up to the lower edge of the damper. The plate 17 may be placed in position either before or after the end plates 13 and 14: are embedded in the side Walls and the front wall is constructed with reference thereto and of a thickness at its lower edge corresponding to the width of flange 19 of the top plate. The full width of opening is maintained in the construction of the smoke chamber to the level indicated by the upper corner 33 (Figure 2) of plates'lS and 14:. From this point the walls of the smoke chamber converge to the chimney fine 12. The remaining proportions of the fireplace are readily constructed from this point on in accordance with a few simple directions which are preferably supplied with the damper assembly, giving the proportions as above set forth for the flue, connection and remaining parts of fireplace for the various size openings for which the damper assembly is designed. V

g It will accordinglybe seen that an ordinary mechanic can readily build a properly proportioned fireplace structure in accordance with my improved invention by the use of my combined hood, throat and damper construction as a template or guide for its construction.

It will be understood that instead of having a separate top plate 17, the top plate 17 and the sidewalls 13 and 1A may be formed integrally and constructedfrom a single metal sheet or molded composition. 7 o It will also be understood that the damper blade may be bent from a single metal sheet with projecting ends bent to form the support ing pintles. or pivot points therefor.

' While the preferred way of constructing my improved fireplaces in accordance with my invention is to use the combined damper, hood and throat construction asa templet or guide, it will be obvious that a fireplace constructed in any well known manner .may be proportioned in accordance with my invention. The damper blade may be omitted, if desired, as shown in Figure 8. It will therefore be understood that the invention is not restricted to the details hereinbefore set forth but that the scope thereof is to be determined from the terms of the appended claims; Accordingly,

What is desired to be secured Patent and claimed as new is 1. A fireplace including a narrow soifit, a

by Letters fireback extending a substantial distanceabove said vsofiit t spaced therefrom to form a hood, a smoke chamber, a flue, a throat of restricted Width but of a length equal to the full width of the fireplace opening leading from said hood to said smoke chamber, the smoke chamber being of the full width of the fireplace opening adjacent the throat and graduallyconvergingto said fiue, said fine and said throat being of substantially the same cross sectional area.

2. A fireplace including afire back that is carried a substantial distance above the upper edge of the opening to form a smoke collecting hood, a throat of restricted area extending from said hood, a smoke chamber above said throat and communicating therewith, said smoke chamber being of'relatively large capacity, and a chimney fiue connected to said smokechamber, the cross sectional area of said flue being substantially the same as the cross sectional varea of said throat. j r V 8. A fireplace including a throat, a smoke chamber and a flue of a cross sectional area substantially the same as said throat, said smoke chamber being between said throat and said flue, said throat-and each flue being of restricted area compared to the'fireplace opening, the smoke chamber being of the full-width of said openingthrough .a substantial portion of its height and tapering thereafter to the size of the flue. v

a. A fireplace including a fireback extend.- ing 15 to 30 per cent of the height of the fireplace opening above said opening, a throat of the full width of said opening and with an aperture equal to of from 8 to 15' ercent of its hei ht leadin therefrom a smoke chamber communicating therewith, and a chimney flue in communlcation w1th said smoke chamber, sald flue having across sectional area corresponding substantially to the cross sectional area of said throat.

5. A fireplace as defined in claim 4 in which the smoke chamber is of the full width of the "fireplace opening throughout v a substantial portion of its height and tapering thereafter to the size of the flue.

6. per support comprising a plate provided with means "to attach it to an end wall of the fireplace, means on said plateto predetermine the contour'of the inner surface of the front wall of the fireplace, and means i a on said plate to indicate the point to which the fireback of the fireplace should be carried, and to support the damper.

7. Acombined fireplace templet and damper support comprising a plate provided with means to attach it to an end wall of'the fireplace, bearing means formed-on the edge of said plate conforming to the inner surface vof the front wall ofthe fireplace, and means on said plate to indicatethe point to which the fireback should ,beexr tended, said last named means being con-v structed to serve as the pivotal support for the damper. v i

8.. fireplace templet andidamper s'upa.

A combined fireplace'templet and damport as defined in claim 7 in which the damper supporting means are a plurality of holes arranged in series spaced differing distances from the securing means.

9. A combined fireplace templet and damper support comprising end plates having their edges shaped to conform to the under surface of the front wall of said fireplace, a plate secured to said plates projecting forwardly of the edge of said end plates a distance equal to the desired soffit of the fireplace, and means on said end plates to indicate the extent of the fireback for openings of various sizes, said last named means serv' ing to support the damper.

10. A construction as defined in claim 9 in which the damper supporting means comprises series of holes dilferently spaced with respect to the upper edges of the end plates and in which the holes carry adjacent indicia showing the position of the damper for openings of various heights.

11. A fire place including a hood comprising a pair of end members positioned in the side walls of the fireplace above the open-' ing, and a member extending transversely of the fireplace between said end members, said transversely extending member defining the width of the soffit and the front of the hood and said side members being provided With indicia to indicate the extent of the fireback and the width of the throat leading from said hood to the smoke chamber, said end plates being provided with a plurality of dampers supports associated with the various indicia to support the damper in proper position for the width of the throat and height of the fireback.

12. A fireplace including a hood comprising a pair of end members positioned in the side walls of the fireplace above the open end, a member extending transversely of the fireplace between said end members, said transversely extending member defining the width of the soffit and the front of the hood, and said side members being provided with indicia in terms of height of fireplace opening to indicate the extent of the fireback constituting the rear of the hood and to show the correct width of the throat leading to the smoke chamber, said end lates being provided with a plurality o damper supports associated with the various indicia to support the damper in proper position for the width of the throat and height of the fireplace.

13. A fireplace consisting of smoke collecting and discharging portions built about a combined hood and templet, said hood and templet comprising sheet metal transverse and longitudinal members secured together to form a lining for said discharging portion, said transverse members being provided with a plurality of damper supports arranged in position to give eificient opera- 

